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Otis
Otis Elevator Company is the world's largest manufacturer of vertical transportation system. The company was founded in Yonkers, New York, USA by Elisha Otis, who invented the safety mechanism of the elevator should the hoisting rope break. This was created due to an accident with a freight lift at an local factory that injured the people using itThe Secret Life of the Lift (Secret Life Of Machines Series 3 (1993) by Tim Hunkin) - YouTube. History 1853-1899 Otis was founded by Elisha Otis in New York, NY, USA, after he demonstrated the special safety elevator mechanism in the Crystal Palace Exhibition in New York City in 1853. By the end of 1856, Otis had sold more than 40 elevators, all freight models. In 1857, the world's first passenger elevator was installed at E. V. Haughwuot & Company in New York, NY. In 1861, Otis' elevator safety brake was patented (US patent: 31128AUS 31128A: Improvement in hoisting apparatus). After Elisha Otis died of diphtheria in 1861, the company was continued under his two sons Charles and Norton. Soon, the company was renamed to "Otis Brothers Co." with Charles as the company's president. In 1868, Otis developed a steam-powered passenger elevator and in 1870, the company introduce a water-pressured hydraulic elevator. In 1875, Otis invented the elevator governor. In the 1880s, Otis has established branch offices in London and Paris, and had installed elevators in the Eiffel Tower, London Underground, Glasgow Harbour Tunnel, etc. In 1889, Otis installed the first 2 elevators of the first sucessful electric elevator model at the Demarest Building in New York, NY. In 1892, Otis installed the first elevators with the Unit Multi-Voltage (formerly called Ward Leonard) principal, for smoother ride quality. Otis invented the automatic elevator in 1894 and was installed in the residence of Mrs. E. I. Shepard. It was the first recorded automatic (operatorless) elevator with push buttons. 1900-1999 Otis developed the escalator technology in 1895 and was introduced it in the Paris Exposition in 1900, a step type escalator. After that, the same escalator was installed in a department store in Pittsburgh, PA (Possibly Kaufmann's). In 1898, Otis greatly contributed to the high speed water hydraulic elevator. Otis also made another type of escalator, called the cleat type escalator. This type was probably not popular, and was made for only maybe 20 years. Otis invented the gearless traction elevator in 1903. The first commercial installation was at the Beaver Building in New York City, NY. Otis invented the geared traction elevator in 1908. The cable wrapped around the motor multiple times. Otis invented the modern style geared traction elevator in 1911. Now, the cable only goes over the motor. This technology is still used today. Also in the same year, Otis installed their first elevator in Germany. In 1915, Otis invented the self-leveling elevator, which they called the Micro-Drive. This elevator provides accurate stops at floor landings for the comfort of passengers. It was first used for the U.S. Army Bases during wartimes. In 1921, Otis offered their first complete elevator maintenance service to Otis elevator owners in Springfield, IL. In 1924, Otis introduced a high speed semi-automatic elevator, called SignalControl. This elevator could make accurate automatic stops from twice the speed possible with manual operation. It was first installed in the Standard Oil Building in New York City, NY. In the same year, Otis made their first modern style automatic door. In 1925, Otis introduced Collective Control, the first ever selective-collective elevator system with a "memory", thus eliminating the need of elevator operators. This might have been the first Otis elevator model with fully automatic doors, but it is unconfirmed if this system always used automatic doors. Otis's Collective Control elevator was first installed in St. Luke's Hospital in Chicago, IL. In 1931, a double-deck elevator was introduced by Otis. The first one was installed in the Empire State Building in New York, NY. Possibly in the 1930s, Otis started using steel steps for escalators. In 1948, Otis introduced a high speed fully automatic elevator, called AUTOTRONIC Elevatoring. Now, elevator operators were completely obsolete, and the elevator cars are operated automatically and electronically as a coordinated group. The first installation of this elevator was completed at the Atlantic Refining Company Building in Dallas, TX in 1950. On July 7, 1976, after a hostile take over, Otis became a wholly owned subsidiary of United Technologies Corp. In 1979, Otis introduced the Otis Elevonic 101, a fully microprocessor based elevator system for high-rise buildings. Otis introduced the Otis Elevonic 401 elevator in 1981 which was equipped with synthesized automated speech, information display and security features. In 1983, Otis introduced a computerized dispatching service called OTISLINE. This service runs 24 hours a day and designed for Otis elevator mechanics. Initially, the service was only available in North America but it was later introduced in France in 1984 and China in 2000. In 1988, Otis introduced Remote Elevator Monitoring or REM, which is a diagnostic system for checking and monitoring elevator performance from distant locations. In 1995, the system was expanded to 8 of 18 countries by introducing REM III. Otis purchased UK's oldest elevator company Express Lift Co. Ltd. of Northampton as well as Evans Lifts of Leichester in 1997. Later, both companies merged together to form "Express Evans". 2000-current In 2000, Otis introduced its machine-roomless elevator product, Gen2, which replaces conventional steel cables with flat polyurethane coated steel belts. It also features a smaller, energy-efficient gearless machine. The Gen2 elevator was introduced to the North American and Japanese market in 2003. Otis introduced its destination dispatch system called "Compass" in 2005, which is similar to Schindler Miconic 10 elevators. In 2013, Otis introduced its new generation "CompassPlus" destination dispatch. In 2013, Otis launched a new residential Gen2 Switch elevator that eliminates the need for three phase power, is solar-power capable, and uses battery technology to continue to run when the power goes out.Otis launched new residential solar-powered Gen2 elevator Locations Otis has its headquarters in Farmington, Connecticut, USA and has major manufacturing facilities in America, Europe, and Asia. They have ten research centers globally, and eight area headquarters located in: *Farmington, Connecticut, USA *Madrid, Spain *Paris, France *London, England *Philippines *São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil *Shanghai, China *Singapore Otis also have two tallest test towers. One is the Bristol Test Tower located in Connecticut, USA with a height of 384 ft (117 m), and another one is the Shibayama Test Tower located in Shibayama, Japan with a height of 505 ft (154 m). The Shibayama Test Tower is currently Otis's tallest test tower. Notable products Elevators Signal-Control Signal Control was the world first semi-automatic relay logic controlled elevator system from 1924. Collective-Control Collective Control was the world's first automatic relay logic controlled elevator system from around 1924. This system had automatic doors, and most likely 5 speeds. This system did not support very high speed applications. Autotronic Otis Autotronic (auto'matic elec'tronic) was an automatic programmed elevator system introduced in 1948. Unlike the earlier push-button models (Signal Control), these elevators were large, fast, and could change speeds and adjust their schedules to suit traffic demands, as well has having the ability to bypass hall calls when the car is fully loaded. Elevonic 101 Elevonic 101 was the first completely micro-processor-based elevator control system. It was introduced in 1979. Elevonic 401 Elevonic 401 was the first "human-engineered" elevator with synthesized speech, information display and security system. It was introduced in 1981 as the second product of the Elevonic class for high-rise applications. Elevonic 411 and 311 and Otis Elevonic 311 Elevonic 411 and 311 were introduced in 1989 and were the most advanced elevator systems in the world. A year later, the modernization series for both models (411M and 311M) were launched. Otis 2000 Otis 2000 was a series of elevator models mainly for the European markets, although it was also available in the Asia Pacific region. It was launched in 1993. Skyway Skyway was the first AC gearless elevator in the world with large load capacity and Double Deck elevator (1998). SkyWay has another name called "Super Double-Deck Elevator System (Chinese: 超級雙層升降機系統)". SkyRise SkyRise is Otis's high speed gearless elevator for high-rise buildings. Gen2 Gen2 is Otis's flagship brand of machine room less elevators sold since 2000. OH 5000 OH 5000 is Otis's current mid to high-rise elevator model. This model is also manufactured by Xizi Otis since the early 2000s. Compass / CompassPlus Compass (now known as CompassPlus) is Otis' destination dispatch system, launched in 2005. Since 2013, it is known as CompassPlus. Otis SkyBuild SkyBuildOtis SkyBuild brochure is Otis's self-climbing elevator system used during construction where the elevator climbs one floor at a time as the building rises. Each jumps can be accomplished between shifts, thus reducing impact on other trades. Once the building is completed, the permanent elevator is put into service as Otis SkyRise. This system is very similar to Kone JumpLift. FOVF This is a freight elevator model made by Otis and Xizi Otis in China. OmniHome OmniHome is a residential elevator only sold in Taiwan. It is made with OEM parts from E-Feng Machinery Co., Ltd. of Taiwan. Escalators *Escal-Aire *506 NCE *508 NCE *510 PSE (only sold in Hong Kong) *512 NCE *513 NPE *520 NPE *LINK *NextStep *XO-508 *XO21NP (for public transport facilities) *XO-PE (for public transport facilities) Moving walks Note: Some of Otis's moving walk models are known as '''Trav-O-Lator. *610 NPT Trav-O-Lator *606 NCT Trav-O-Lator *XOP Others Remote Elevator Monitoring Remote Elevator Monitoring (REM) is a diagnostic system for checking elevator performance from a distant location. It was introduced in 1986 for North America, expanded to France in the late 1980s and subsequently to other countries. Subsidiaries *Otis Electric Elevator Co. Ltd. (Hangzhou, China. formerly Xizi Otis Elevator Co. Ltd.)Merged with Xizi Elevator Group in 1997. It is one of Otis's largest subsidiary companies. Name changed from "Xizi Otis Elevator Co. Ltd." in 2017. *Sigma Elevator Company (South Korea)Established in 2001 as a result of merger between Otis and LG Elevator in 1999. Sigma is a subsidiary of Otis Elevator Korea and a brand of South Korea manufactured-Otis elevators for overseas market. *EXPRESS Elevator (Suzhou, China)Express Introduction - EXPRESS *Eastern Elevators (Australia) *CFA (France) *Eguren Kone (Spain) Notable acquisitions *'''1905 - Fensom Elevator Works (Canada, later became Otis-Fensom until 1949)Otis Fensom Elevator Co. Building the North American Elevator Company - Elevator Scene *'1914 '- Waygood & Co. (United Kingdom) *'1947 '- Officine Meccaniche STIGLER (ItalyRenamed to Stigler-OTIS until 1987, but not all elevators.) *'1951 '- Flohr Aufzüge (Germany, renamed to Flohr-Otis in countries Flohr previously were operated in) *'1982 '- Evans Lifts Limited (United Kingdom) *'1984 '- Falconi S.A.I.R. (Italy) *'1985 '- Ceam (Italy) *'1988 '- Wadsworth Becker Lifts Limited (United Kingdom)Wadsworth Lifts Limited merged with Becker Equipment & Lifts Limited in 1986 and became Wadsworth Becker. It was sold to Otis Elevator Company in 1988 following a loss of trading results.Wadsworth Lifts Limited - 30 November 1988 (PDF) *'199?' - Bruno Haack Aufzüge (Germany) *'1995 '- Boral Elevators (Australia) *'1995 '- PT. Citas Engineering (Indonesia)Originally a distributor of Otis elevators and escalators in Indonesia from 1964 until 1992. Otis had a joint venture with the company in 1992 and took over it in 1995, becoming PT. Citas Otis Elevator.Rangkuman Tentang Citas Otis - PT. Citas Otis Elevator (Indonesian) (archived) *'1997 '- Express Lift Co. Ltd. (United Kingdom) *'1999 '- LG Elevators (South Korea, became LG-OTIS and Sigma) *'2002' - Cavinder Elevators, Inc. (United States) *'2003 '- Amtech Elevator Services (United States) *'2011 '- Marshall Elevators (United States) *'2016 '- Schindler Elevator KK (Japan) *'2017 '- Melco Brazil S.A Lifts (Brazil)Otis Brazil Completes Acquisition of Mitsubishi Electric’s elevators and escalators Business in Brazil Distributors Current Former Notable elevator installations Elevator fixtures *List of Otis elevator fixtures - for elevator fixtures found in all regions except the United States and Canada. *List of Otis elevator fixtures (North America) - for elevator fixtures found in the United States and Canada. *List of Sigma elevator fixtures - for elevator fixtures found in South Korea, as well as those made by Otis Korea's subsidiary Sigma in Asia, United States and certain Latin American countries. Accidents and incident *On 13 May 2003, an upward escalator at City Hall MRT station, Singapore suddenly reversed, flinging some 20 people on it backwards, including a woman who was pregnant. *On July 24, 2009, a group of 8 people were trapped for 8 hours in an Otis elevator in Toronto. A repair man who tried to fix the elevator fell more then 20 floors to his death. *On December 14, 2010, an Otis escalator installed in the International Trade station of Shenzhen Metro Line 1 retrograded without notice, causing 25 passenger injures. *On July 5, 2011, an Otis 513MPE escalator installed at Beijing Subway Line 4 Zoo Station escalator changed direction without notice, causing 30 people to fall. One boy was killed and 27 people injured, prompting China to halt the use of the escalator model. *On March 25, 2017, a long Otis escalator which ran from the 4th to 8th floor of Langham Place in Hong Kong, China, malfunctioned which caused 18 people injured. The escalator suddenly stopped, reversed and then sped up. The cause of the accident was suspected to have been caused by a faulty drive chain and the emergency brake system failed to workVIDEOS: 18 injured after 45-metre-long escalator reverses and speeds up in Mong Kok - Coconuts Hong Kong. *In February 2007, the European Union regulators fined Otis Elevator 225 million Euros for being part of a price-fixing cartel. Other manufacturers such as ThyssenKrupp, Schindler, Kone and Mitsubishi Elevator Europe were also fined similar amounts in the same cartel. *On December 19, 2015, an older Sovietic elevator modernized in 2001 by Otis MCS-300 at Ostrovityanova 49 in Moscow, Russia, young mother rolled her stroller into the elevator and the elevator suddenly broke the rope and as a result of the arrival of one floor stroller ripped and 10 month old girl died. Trivia *Otis elevators in Japan which were installed prior to 2005 are branded as National OTIS. This is because Otis products in Japan had routes directly sold by the company and routes to sell via Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (now Panasonic). The "National OTIS" brand was abolished as a new cooperation system was established between Matsushita Electric and Otis in July 2005. *Otis has also dabbled in horizontal automated people-mover "shuttle" systems, such as the Otis Hovair. *In some parts of the Canary Islands in Spain, Otis is known as "Zardoya OTIS" (Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, and La Gomera) and "Schneider OTIS" (Tenerife). Gallery Logos Otis Globe logo.jpg|Otis globe logo (18?? - 1920s) Otis UTC logo.jpg|Otis logo with the United Technologies Company (UTC) logo. This logo is still used today (normally found in some US Otis elevator brochures). OTIS.png|Current Otis logo New OTIS logo.jpg|New Otis logo normally found in the United States (such as on Series 5 and 6 fixtures) (2010 - present). Otis_United.jpg|Current Otis logo since 2015 (founded in some maintenance hotline plate in Hong Kong, ChinaMaintenance hotline plate galleries (C) (hkelev.com)) Nameplates VintageOtisNameplate.png|1890s? Otis nameplate mounted on outside of elevator car. OtisEscalatorNameplate.JPG|1900s-1920s Otis escalator nameplate images_ARCHIVE_PICS_Misc_archive_ml-signs_otis.jpg|Vintage Otis badge from 1905. 6737385661_de60aafc74_z.jpg|An old school Otis weight limit plate IMG_5055.JPG|1912 Otis nameplate IMG_1480.JPG|1920s-1970s Otis nameplate SignalControlNameplate.JPG|1930's Otis Signal Control Nameplate Nameplate2.JPG|1930's Otis Signal Control Nameplate Nameplate.JPG|1950's? Otis nameplate OTIS 2007.jpg|Typical Otis 3200 capacity badge (Asia). Otis capbadge.JPG|Newer Otis capacity badge normally found in Gen2 elevators in Asian countries. Otis Elevator Company Pty. Ltd..jpg|Typical Otis capacity badge in Australia. OTIS capacity badge SS1.JPG|Otis elevator nameplate normally found in the 3200 elevators in Asia. Otis Elevator.png|Weight plate. Location unknown. Source:Google Images OTIS Unknown STEP Buttons.jpg|2012 Otis elevator nameplate in Hong Kong. Landing sills nameplates 5151520043_bb600c47bd.jpg|Otis globe logo plate IMG_5053.JPG|Mid 1900s-mid 1910s Otis door sill IMG_5308.JPG|Late 1910s-early 1920s Otis door sill IMG 5115.JPG|Mid 1920's Otis door sill IMG_5136.JPG|Slightly different mid 1920s Otis door sill 20120416-010m.jpg|1920s Otis sills nameplate Otis door sills logo 20s.jpg|Another 1920s Otis sills nameplate. DoorSill.JPG|Late 1920s-early 1930's Otis Micro-Drive door sill (Damaged) Old OTIS Door Sill 4.jpg|Old Otis sills nameplate (1940s to 1980s). 219_otis-940x626.jpg|Another old Otis sills nameplate. OTIS Series 1 door sill logo.jpg|1980s to 1990s Otis sills nameplate. OTIS Door Sill.jpg|Current Otis sills nameplate normally found in newer Gen2 elevators. OTIS escalator landing plate SLH.png|1980s-1990s Otis escalator nameplate commonly found in Asia (credit to Instagram user SchindlerLift1874). Other Otis Elevator Testing Tower Bristol.jpg|The Bristol Testing Tower in Connecticut. PT. Citas Otis Head Office Jakarta.jpg|The former head office of Otis elevator in Jakarta, Indonesia (PT. Citas Otis Elevator). It has moved to another building since January 9, 2017. Otis logo door sills Austin TX.jpg|Vintage Otis door sills. Otis classic leveling.jpg|Otis elevator pre-door/classic leveling. OTIS_mobile_fence_JKT.jpg|Otis elevator and escalator service fence in Jakarta, Indonesia. Otis Gen2 MRL cabinet MPV.jpg|Otis Gen2 MRL cabinet at Matahari Dept. Store in Pluit Village, Jakarta, Indonesia. Otis maintenance paper MPV.jpg|Otis service notice paper in Indonesia. OTIS elevator under repair PSA.JPG|An Otis Gen2 elevator is being repaired in Jakarta, Indonesia. Otis elevator PlazaGlobePB.jpg|Early 1980s Otis (non-functioning) elevator at Plaza Globe Pasar Baru, Jakarta, Indonesia (Credit to YouTube user VR303Elevators) OtisElevatorInstructions.JPG|Late 1920s Otis "Instructions to operate elevator" sign OtisOutOfService.JPG|Otis maintenance in progress sign Otis Supervisory Panel SITKMUTT.jpg|Otis supervisory panel. Otis Supervisory Panel SirirajHospital.png|Otis supervisory panel. Video External links Website *Official website *Sigma Elevator Company *Hangzhou Xizi Otis *List of patents *Complete history of Otis Elevator Company *Otis history - The Elevator Museum site News Report *Apple Daily (Hong Kong): Elevator mechanics, to make sure the lift is running well, Septmber 26, 2016 (Chinese only). Category:Elevator companies Category:Elevator companies based in the United States Category:Historic elevator companies